Determination of physical activity levels and eating behaviors of amateur tennis players

This study aimed to determine the physical activity levels and eating behaviors of amateur tennis players and to make comparisons between groups. The online survey technique was used to obtain the research data. First of all, a questionnaire consisting of 12 statements including the demographic characteristics of the participants was created. The Dutch Eating Behavior Scale, developed by Van Strein et al. (1986) and translated into Turkish by Bozan (2009), was used to measure the nutritional behaviors of individuals. The study was conducted on amateur tennis players aged 18 and over. A total of 285 participants were reached. SPSS 25 statistical package program was used to analyze the data. Descriptive analysis was performed in the study to analyze the demographic characteristics of the participants. T-test and Anova test were applied to determine the physical activity participation status and eating behaviors of amateur tennis players and to make comparisons between groups. T-test was applied for variables with two categories and Anova test was applied for variables with more than two categories for the analysis of differences between groups. According to the results of the research, it was determined that the participants had above average restrictive eating behavior, below average emotional eating behavior and high level external eating behavior. These results show that the participants can consciously control their eating behavior, do not tend to increase food consumption to change their emotional state and engage in eating behavior under the influence of external stimuli even if they do not feel hungry. It was concluded that the majority of the participants participated in moderate and high intensity physical activity. This is a result of the fact that the participants are amateur tennis players, are involved in sports and tennis is in the category of high intensity physical activity. While a significant difference was observed between the groups in terms of gender, province of residence, age and income level in total eating behaviors; no significant difference was observed in terms of marital status, regular sports practice, smoking and alcohol use, occupation, education level and body mass index. In terms of participation in physical activity, a significant difference was observed between the groups in terms of gender, regular sports practice, alcohol use, age, income level and occupation; no significant difference was observed in terms of marital status, province of residence, smoking and education level. Keywords: Eating behavior, physical activity, tennis.